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Time machine not working right

Time machine couldn't complete backup to the drive I've been using for years . Lots of space on it. Message says "Time machine could not create a local snapshot to back up from."

Last successful backup was 45 minutes earlier though.

5 replies

Local snapshots are on your Mac, not on Time Machine. Your hard drive may be running low on space. Check that going to Mac HD and "Get Info" (command-i). What does it report?

About Time Machine local snapshots - Apple Support

To view the local snapshots or delete them open iTunes and from the menu > Preferences > Devices.

I'm not running Catalina. But you can follow the advice in the Support Topic to delete the snapshots and see if that clears it up:

If you want to delete local snapshots manually, turn off Time Machine temporarily:

  1. Open Time Machine preferences from the Time Machine menu  in the menu bar. Or choose Apple menu  > System Preferences, then click Time Machine.
  2. Deselect ”Back Up Automatically” or click the Off/On switch, depending on what you see in Time Machine preferences.
  3. Wait a few minutes to allow the local snapshots to be deleted. Then turn on Time Machine again. It remembers your backup disks.


Have you considered the HD may be damaged and may need to be replaced? All HD do get old and eventually die, if your drive is 5 years old or older then it may be wise to replace it.

Also You state "To view the local snapshots or delete them open iTunes and from the menu > Preferences > Devices." but iTunes as we knew it doesn't exist and I could find nothing about devices under music preferences

I have 671 GB available so surely not a space issue.